I love it when you call
by Dolphindreams
Summary: What if Jack decided to reach out to Sam after the move to Washington in an unusual way. Rating is just to be on the safe side.


I love it when you call

Sam walked in through the front door and took her coat off. She couldn't believe she was so exhausted. Mind you it had been a very long week off world. She absently flicked through the mail (bills, bills and more bills), as she wandered to the couch. Then she saw something that made her stop dead. That oh so familiar scrawl on the front of an envelope. //Why on Earth (or any other planet) would Jack be writing to me. I haven't even spoken to him in months, wow I really miss him// She opened the envelope to find a CD. //How strange. He didn't even write a note// Like the good soldier she was she figured she was meant to listen to it so she put it in the player.

I found a switch  
Turned it on  
I hit the ditch  
You carried on  
I was so near  
Now you're so far  
Are you quite sure  
Just who you are

O IIIII  
O you could chose a friend but you don't seem to have the time  
O IIIII  
I wonder if you ever get to say what's on your mind  
O take a little time, take a little time 

_chorus_  
I love it when you call  
I love it when you call  
I love it when you call  
But you never call at all  
So what's the complication it's only conversation  
I love it when you call  
But you never call at all

Remember me, I used to be the best time buddy  
That you couldn't wait to see  
But getting old, it takes its toll  
And hearts getting broken lead to people growing cold

O IIIIII  
I'm flipping with a coin that's got a tail on either side  
O IIIIII  
I'm gonna be the one who makes you stop and realise  
You could have it all  
We should have it all

_chorus_

Yea I wonder where you been  
Yea I wonder who you seen  
And I hope you find your dream  
When you do I really hope it's all it seems

_chorus_

She couldn't believe what she was hearing so she played it again and then a third time just to be sure. //Oh my god! Does this mean he still cares about me? How can one man know how I'm feeling so well, he's on the other side of the country for crying out loud? Great now I even sound like him in my head. All I know is the man I love (yes I love him I realised it a while ago) wants to talk to me, and I miss him so dam much. The song said we could still have it all, does that mean I didn't leave it too late? I have to go and see him, this can't be sorted in a phone call.//

**A few hours later, Washington DC…**

Samantha Carter stood outside the address that Jack had given her months ago when he'd moved out here. //It's such a beautiful house, being a general certainly has its perks. God I'd love to live here, it's perfect. Stop thinking like that right now, he probably only wanted to talk. He hates flying a desk, he's just bored.//

Then, as if the universe was trying to prove her right, a tall brunette with dark brown eyes stepped out of his house. She was closely followed by a grinning Jack O'Neill. He locked the front door and slung an arm around the woman's shoulders as they started off down the path. //Oh my god, no! How could I have been so stupid? He doesn't care about me, he's moved on. Shit, they're going to see me if I don't move.//

She quickly leapt into the bushes by the side of the path and hid there. Then by some morbid fascination she followed them across the street and through the park. As she watched they were talking and laughing and he still kept his arm wrapped around her. //Damn. He looks happy and relaxed. But he's still not smiling in that special way, the one he reserves just for me.//

Then she watched them walk into a little café near the fountain. //Oh how romantic. Yuck. Why would he send me that song and be with someone else. Maybe he wants me to be here and see her, maybe he wants to see my reaction, just like I wanted his when I was with Pete. He let me down but I'm not going to let him down. This is my last chance to tell him how I feel.//

She walked into the café with as much courage as she could and looked around for him, only to find him kissing the other woman. // He's kissing her! Ok it was more of a peck on the cheek, but still. God I just want to go home and cry. I know that I can win him back though. He wouldn't have sent me the song without a damn good reason. Jack O'Neill never does anything on a whim. I bet the little brunette doesn't know that.//

Still indecisive she still stood there in the doorway when Jack glanced over there. "Carter! What are you doing here?" He shouted as he walked towards her. //holy crap he's coming over here and he's wearing THAT smile, the one that turns my insides to mush, the one reserved just for me. Quick I have to feign surprise; I don't think he's fooled. He's now giving me that cute little confused look. How can he be with her, he should be with me.//

"Sir! Hi, how are you?"

"I'm fine but you still didn't answer my question. What brings you to my neck of the woods?" //Crap he noticed I didn't answer. What the hell do I say. I got you're CD, thought you loved me, rushed here to declare my love for you and found you with another girl.//

"Well come on Carter. I don't bite you know, that's your job." She blushed at the memory of waking up in the dark and thinking he was an attacker.

"I...err….I got the CD you sent me." She said looking down and blushing, prettily in Jacks opinion.

"Oh….err did you like it?"

"Yes I liked it a lot. Why did you send it?" Neither of them noticed the brunette walking towards them, they were so focussed on each others eyes.

"Well I sent….."

"Hi Jack honey, are you going to introduce me?" The brunette said as she linked her arm through Jacks.

"Oh, yeah sure. Carter this is Lizzie O'Neill. Lizzie this is my ex-second in command Lieutenant-colonel Samantha Carter. There's a doctor somewhere in the name to." //Lizzie O'Neill! Oh my god he's married her. He just sent the CD as a joke so I would call him and he could tell me the news. I have to get out of here now!//

"Hi, it's nice to meet you Samantha, Jacks told me a lot about you." //Yeah right. Bitch! I hate you.//

"Call me Sam, and I've heard nothing about you." Sam said trying to smile sweetly. "Anyway, I have to go err meet someone, yeah that's it. I have a meeting to go to. Bye." And with that she turned and ran out the door as fast as possible.

She kept on walking not noticing what was around her, tears starting to fall down her face. //How could he? He didn't even tell me, he didn't tell anyone. I thought we all meant more to him than that. Obviously I was wrong.//

All of a sudden she was stopped by a hand on her arm belonging to the very person she was thinking about. "Whoa, Carter. What was all that about?"

She spun around to face him her tears turning rapidly to anger. "How could you? How could you get married and not tell any of us? Not tell me. I thought we meant more to you than that, I thought _I_ meant more. I was wrong about you, you are just a dumb old general."

"What! Married! What made you think I was married? You know that I lo…. Have you been crying?"

"It's kind of obvious sir. Her last name is O'Neill, you had your arm around her and you kissed her"

"You think I'm married to Lizzie?" Was all he got out before he burst out laughing.

"This is funny to you? You bastard. I never want to see you or speak to you again. Goodbye Jack." He suddenly came to his senses, the use of his name making him realise just how serious she was. The look in her eyes telling him the amount of hurt and betrayal she felt. All caused by him.

"Sam, Sam wait. Lizzie is Lizzie O'Neill because she's my sister. I'm not married to her. How could I marry anyone when my heart already belongs to you."

She stopped dead hoping that what he was saying was the truth. //His sister, can I believe him? He said he loves me; I've wanted to hear that for so long. It all makes sense really.// "I love you too jack."

Within seconds he had walked up to her and picked her up in his arms, both of them holding on for dear life, tears streaming down both their faces. "I love you so much Sam. That's why I sent the CD. I just couldn't bear not talking to you any more."

"I know Jack, that's why I came here. I had to see you, to tell you how I feel, and to see if you felt the same way."

"Always" he murmured, as he bent his head down to kiss her. Just as his lips were about to brush hers…

"Jack! Oops, sorry. I'll err just leave you two alone. I'll be waiting in the café," stammered Lizzie, as she came walking up.

"No, it's fine. Please stay. I just wanted to apologise for earlier, I wasn't exactly very friendly." //God she probably hates me.// Jack just stood there his arms loosely around Sam's waist a slightly dreamy expression on his face. "Besides I think Jack's off in his own little world."

The two women giggling snapped Jack out of his trance like state. "Hey, what did I say about giggling?" He said while lightly tickling Sam.

"Yes sir, sorry sir," Sam managed to stutter while trying to control her laughter. The two women managed to calm down after a while and stopped giggling.

"Right now that's better. Shall we all go back to that café now because I don't know about you ladies but I'm starving," said Jack as his stomach gave a loud grumbling, which set the women off laughing again. "For crying out loud, I knew it was a mistake to introduce you two."

Sam suddenly stepped out of Jacks embrace, leaving him feeling rather bereft, and walked up to Lizzie as they started back towards the café. "So you got any stories of Jack growing up? I'm dying to know what he was like. He never talks about his family, I didn't even know he had a sister."

"Lizzie don't you dare say a thing," Jack shouted as he caught them up, giving his sister his best General stare.

"Jack that look has never worked on me and it won't now." With that she turned to Sam who had taken Jack's hand in hers, a fact that he was very pleased with. "Jack was a little terror. We got so many phone calls from the principal, it drove mum batty. He was a wannabe James Dean as a teenager, leather jacket, fast car, and pretty girls on his arm, the whole works." She said laughing once more.

"I can definitely imagine that. Not changed much, have you general?"

"Hey, I wasn't that bad. And the only amazingly pretty girl I want on my arm, and have wanted for the past 8 years or so, is you. What happened to calling me Jack," he pouted.

"So, Sam can you tell me what my big brother's been up to these past 8 years? He's never in town, always dealing with some secret mission of some sort."

"Well I can't tell you because it's classified, but he's certainly had his moments. As I remember he's done a captain Kirk a couple of times." Sam said glaring slightly at Jack.

"Really? My brother, the strict military man, never break the rules."

"Hey," protested Jack. "I was drugged for one of them, and I was in that other place for three months. I never thought I'd see you again. There were those two other times something like that happened. I seem to remember a certain captain jumping me in the locker room. I did the gentlemanly thing and took that person to the infirmary."

"Yes, that did rather annoy me," chimed in Sam.

"That was you?" Lizzie said as she started laughing again. "You said there were two other times, what's the other one?"

"Well I can't really be blamed for that one either, we both had our memories erased but we still had our feelings for each other." Jack said while smiling at Sam. "That was 4 or 5 years ago."

"Wow, you've had feelings for each other for that long? Why did you only just get together? I mean it's obvious you're totally in love."

"Well I thought he was in love with Liara, the woman he was stranded with for 3 months. Or he was in love with his ex-wife. Then when I realised he had feelings for me he didn't want to risk breaking regulations. Then I gave up waiting for a life with Jack and got engaged to someone called Pete. I thought Jack didn't care any more. Then I went to tell him how I felt and that I was having doubts about the wedding and found him with someone else called Kerry. Then I broke up with my fiancé but I thought he was still with Kerry. Then I've been too busy to really talk to him in a while."

"Hey you're the one who wanted to leave it in the damn room. I just wanted to respect your wish and I didn't want to risk your career, I know how important it is to you. I only got together with Kerry because you were engaged. You know the old saying, if you love someone you let them go. That's what I was doing. I thought you were happy. After you came to the house that day it was over between Kerry and me, she could see that I loved you."

"Ahhh, that's so sweet. Real life star-crossed lovers, hopefully you won't end up committing suicide though. You guys have been through so much you deserve to be together," said Lizzie as they reached the café.

"Yes! I can finally get some food. Can we get off the mushy stuff now ladies, I have an image to protect you know." This set the two women off laughing again as they all found a table.

They spent the rest of the meal all talking and laughing. Lizzie was telling stories of Jack growing up and Sam was talking about some of the more interesting missions, making it sound like they were all in a foreign country instead of off-world.

A couple of hours later they all headed back to Jack's house continuing to chat like old friends.

Eventually Lizzie had to pick up her daughter from school which left Sam and Jack alone.

"So…" Jack said as he sat back on the sofa next to Sam.

"So" replied Sam.

"What do you want to do now?"

"Well I seem to remember a kiss that was interrupted," murmured Sam as she leant towards him.

"Carter you always have the best ideas," said Jack as he closed the gap between them. //Oh my god, this man can kiss. I think I'm actually seeing stars.// After what felt like an eternity, but was in fact only a couple of minutes, they pulled away from each other. "Wow,"

"I second that," replied Sam. "I love you, Jack."

"I love you to Sam, marry me?"

"W…w…what?" //Did he just ask me to marry him? Mrs Jack O'Neill, I've dreamt of that for so long. I hope he's not joking, I may shoot him if he is.//

"I said, 'will you marry me?' I love you with all of my heart and I want you to be my wife. I wanted you for 8 long years and now I have you I never want to let you go. We can wait a while to actually get married if you want, I just…" Sam cut him off with a bruising kiss. "Is that a yes?" asked a very hopeful looking Jack.

"That's a yes. Of course I'll marry you." //I think I must be dreaming, maybe I should pinch myself. On second thoughts if this is a dream I never want to wake up.//

**Epilogue…**

They were married 2months later in a small ceremony attended by their closest friends. General Hammond gave the bride away, Cassie was the bridesmaid and Daniel and Teal'c were best men. Thor, Bra'tac and Ry'ac were also in attendance and the president conducted the ceremony as he was the only one with clearance.

They honeymooned at the cabin and a week after they returned Sam discovered she was pregnant with twins. They were born healthy 8months later and named Grace Janet O'Neill and Hope Samantha O'Neill.

Two years later their son Jacob George O'Neill entered the world, named for Sam's father and General Hammond who had died the previous year.

They had fights like every other couple but they were happier than either of them had ever been. They stayed like that until they died, within a month of each other, after 40years of marriage.


End file.
